Ah, beautiful. Pagans sometimes put our faces close to the mother Earth to better commune, feel her presence, and slow down our vibration to a lower harmonic closer to hers. It is so peaceful. I don't kneel much because knees. I'm going to work on that.
Beautiful post. Beautiful reminder. Perhaps only in bowing, in relinquishing the will (often brought about by a breakdown) can space enter, can meaning be made, can receptivity invite guidance and resources which before, in the tight contraction of self protection or ego, were inaccessible. I find great relief in bowing. In our American culture of rugged individualism (which hopefully, collectively we are now beginning to see as the basis of much harm) bowing is the antithesis to heroism. Where in our soul, if we are able to listen, it is the ground which courageous actions may originate. As Leonard Cohen wrote, "If it be thy will."
I haven't thought about this very much before, but I do think it's very important. I like what you said about letting go of the ego and making room for real strength.
It was in yoga class years ago learning child’s pose that for the first time ever i never wanted to move again - just felt like i was home, body, mind, spirit. Since my uninvited roommate Long Covid moved in in 2020, yoga has been on sabbatical except for a few poses - that being one of them of course. But (living alone) when I’ve had my breakdowns/breakthroughs/eruptions, either joy madness exhilaration fury frustration gratitude miracles unbearable pain peace surrender - i hit the floor without even planning it or purposefully. I can pray ecstatic thank you’s quietly kissing the ground, bang my head on the floor & scream, barely hold myself prostrate hysterically laffing with sheer joy,, collapse still & quiet in gratitude for the meal i just made that i have food & shelter, or simply stop walking to the bed & crumble before i get there to feel the ground on my forehead & my arms stretched out on the wood floor to connect with a Higher Power greater than I am. As we say, “time” passes, and it is more integrated in my life as a form of communion & deep gratitude & merging with my Creator/Creatrix, Higher Power, Divine Spirit….
Wonderful sharing of a topic not present much in this orbit we inhabit - my god, if i had fallen prostrate during Lutheran church service I would’ve been scolded by my parents for embarrassing them if they hadn’t called the funny farm already.
Thank you for bringing it to life & sharing guidance & awakening for another path for our practice & souls. 💟🙂↕️
Beautifully said. That’s the grace of hitting bottom and how the 12 Steps actually work. They are not well understood however, to your point. Sadly, AA and 12 Step groups get labeled as cults when what they actually offer, is freedom. Submission to a power greater than oneself is I think, the greatest discovery one can make. Probably explains why we are taught to fear it.
In arrogance we think we know better, that we are in charge and must take the lead. Until we hit something "the ego cannot carry." Even in many spiritual circles the heady arrogant mindset persists. This is a brilliant article about the power in humility and embodiment. So many nuggets of wisdom!
This is framed so well. I wrote of my learning it in "Tis a Gift". For me it came from washing feet and realizing its importance of kneeling to help others in every day life.
As for prayer and dealing with our lives in difficult times, I agree that we should listen more to our bodies as guides to posture. If we are to be embodied then we should utilize the body. We forget history at our own peril.
If i could not kneel, i don't know how i could get through the hard things
If i could not prostrate myself in front of the altar, i could not stand in front of it to celebrate the eucharistic feast. I don't do this every day, or every time, but there are times when i just need to do it. To lay the burdens, the stress, the anxiety, and the weariness begore the altar of God, is to free the soul to serve.
Your post reminds me of two message I received from Love:
"Humility is weakness, like gold is (just another) metal." and
"Throw away the self-deprecating for the happiness of what is. Accept the gifts that Love has given."
In the first message I feel that Love is saying that humility is not a weakness but a hidden wealth. It is, in fact, an essential virtue whose true value we must repeatedly recognize and experience. As you point out in your post, it is an undervalued asset, one we have almost totally forgotten and debased.
In the second message Love asks us to walk the fine line between delighting in our gifts and remaining humble. To do so, we must bow down in gratitude for all that is ours, acknowledging that we possess many gifts that are not of our own making but that Love Itself has given us freely.
As you point out, the problem is that "...because our history is full of examples where bodies were forced to kneel by other bodies, we’ve learned to assume that every bow is a form of oppression." It is time for us to recapture as you say, that prostrating does not have to mean we are worthless but that we recognize that we are not everything. A balance point that allows for awe.
Thank you for bringing the topic of humility to the forefront. May we all remember the strength that comes from true humility.
Thank you for the concept of Embodied Transformation. I am coming at this from the standpoint of working to teach my elderly body Balance again. I believe there is a spiritual dimension to this present disability. The exercises are easy enough and, oh, so slow to reveal results. Thank you for helping me to give language to the journey.
Ah, beautiful. Pagans sometimes put our faces close to the mother Earth to better commune, feel her presence, and slow down our vibration to a lower harmonic closer to hers. It is so peaceful. I don't kneel much because knees. I'm going to work on that.
Beautiful post. Beautiful reminder. Perhaps only in bowing, in relinquishing the will (often brought about by a breakdown) can space enter, can meaning be made, can receptivity invite guidance and resources which before, in the tight contraction of self protection or ego, were inaccessible. I find great relief in bowing. In our American culture of rugged individualism (which hopefully, collectively we are now beginning to see as the basis of much harm) bowing is the antithesis to heroism. Where in our soul, if we are able to listen, it is the ground which courageous actions may originate. As Leonard Cohen wrote, "If it be thy will."
I haven't thought about this very much before, but I do think it's very important. I like what you said about letting go of the ego and making room for real strength.
It was in yoga class years ago learning child’s pose that for the first time ever i never wanted to move again - just felt like i was home, body, mind, spirit. Since my uninvited roommate Long Covid moved in in 2020, yoga has been on sabbatical except for a few poses - that being one of them of course. But (living alone) when I’ve had my breakdowns/breakthroughs/eruptions, either joy madness exhilaration fury frustration gratitude miracles unbearable pain peace surrender - i hit the floor without even planning it or purposefully. I can pray ecstatic thank you’s quietly kissing the ground, bang my head on the floor & scream, barely hold myself prostrate hysterically laffing with sheer joy,, collapse still & quiet in gratitude for the meal i just made that i have food & shelter, or simply stop walking to the bed & crumble before i get there to feel the ground on my forehead & my arms stretched out on the wood floor to connect with a Higher Power greater than I am. As we say, “time” passes, and it is more integrated in my life as a form of communion & deep gratitude & merging with my Creator/Creatrix, Higher Power, Divine Spirit….
Wonderful sharing of a topic not present much in this orbit we inhabit - my god, if i had fallen prostrate during Lutheran church service I would’ve been scolded by my parents for embarrassing them if they hadn’t called the funny farm already.
Thank you for bringing it to life & sharing guidance & awakening for another path for our practice & souls. 💟🙂↕️
In our older seeing, the body was never separate from the path.
It was a way of learning how to yield, not something to conquer or display.
So lowering the body was never humiliation, it was alignment.
Sometimes the body remembers how to rest and release long before the mind learns to let go.
You, my friend are naming a bodily intelligence we’ve almost forgotten.
“Right-sizing the self” feels like relief rather than submission, especially for anyone tired of carrying more than a human frame was meant to hold.
Beautifully said. That’s the grace of hitting bottom and how the 12 Steps actually work. They are not well understood however, to your point. Sadly, AA and 12 Step groups get labeled as cults when what they actually offer, is freedom. Submission to a power greater than oneself is I think, the greatest discovery one can make. Probably explains why we are taught to fear it.
This is so beautifully and astutely put. Thank you for sharing and for your virtual company on this journey.
In arrogance we think we know better, that we are in charge and must take the lead. Until we hit something "the ego cannot carry." Even in many spiritual circles the heady arrogant mindset persists. This is a brilliant article about the power in humility and embodiment. So many nuggets of wisdom!
This is framed so well. I wrote of my learning it in "Tis a Gift". For me it came from washing feet and realizing its importance of kneeling to help others in every day life.
As for prayer and dealing with our lives in difficult times, I agree that we should listen more to our bodies as guides to posture. If we are to be embodied then we should utilize the body. We forget history at our own peril.
If i could not kneel, i don't know how i could get through the hard things
If i could not prostrate myself in front of the altar, i could not stand in front of it to celebrate the eucharistic feast. I don't do this every day, or every time, but there are times when i just need to do it. To lay the burdens, the stress, the anxiety, and the weariness begore the altar of God, is to free the soul to serve.
For me kneeling and or bowing is an intentional deep Enjoinment with That of God. It is a deeper than thought flow of my Soul.
In the USA we cry out, “Super Size Me.” Your call to seek “right sizing” is a more welcome and healthy order.
Puns fully intended.
Your post reminds me of two message I received from Love:
"Humility is weakness, like gold is (just another) metal." and
"Throw away the self-deprecating for the happiness of what is. Accept the gifts that Love has given."
In the first message I feel that Love is saying that humility is not a weakness but a hidden wealth. It is, in fact, an essential virtue whose true value we must repeatedly recognize and experience. As you point out in your post, it is an undervalued asset, one we have almost totally forgotten and debased.
In the second message Love asks us to walk the fine line between delighting in our gifts and remaining humble. To do so, we must bow down in gratitude for all that is ours, acknowledging that we possess many gifts that are not of our own making but that Love Itself has given us freely.
As you point out, the problem is that "...because our history is full of examples where bodies were forced to kneel by other bodies, we’ve learned to assume that every bow is a form of oppression." It is time for us to recapture as you say, that prostrating does not have to mean we are worthless but that we recognize that we are not everything. A balance point that allows for awe.
Thank you for bringing the topic of humility to the forefront. May we all remember the strength that comes from true humility.
The somatic aspect is also seen in child's pose in yoga.
Thank you for the concept of Embodied Transformation. I am coming at this from the standpoint of working to teach my elderly body Balance again. I believe there is a spiritual dimension to this present disability. The exercises are easy enough and, oh, so slow to reveal results. Thank you for helping me to give language to the journey.